Carmel purchases shopping center for $2.8M

The city has approved more than $67 million in taxpayer incentives to attract $310 million in private investment in its downtown area. This video features five major projects under way.
Stephen J. Beard / IndyStar

Carmel has purchased the Mohawk Landing shopping center for $2.8 million and plans to redevelop the roughly 2-acre site.

For now, tenants within the 35-year-old center — including Pizza Hut, Thai Castle, Kim's Alterations and a National Guard recruiting center — remain open. The city's long-term plan, though, is to demolish the single-story, L-shaped building and replace it with a multistory mix of homes, shops, restaurants and offices.

Mayor Jim Brainard said Carmel is exploring options and no timeline has been set for redevelopment. He said the bar for architecture at that intersection has been set high by City Center, which Pedcor is developing just across Range Line Road.

"Pedcor has a great interest in what happens at that site because it is across the street from a huge investment they have made," he said. "They have a huge concern about making sure the architecture is at the current level of their current buildings and will not detract from it."

He said the project will be put to a public bid when the city is ready to move forward. The city likely would offer taxpayer incentives on public parking and other infrastructure.

Carmel quietly closed on the property in June with Carmel-based Mohawk Investments LLC as part of right-of-way acquisition for the new roundabout at City Center Drive (126th Street) and Range Line Road. Brainard said the purchase price was the average of two appraisals the city obtained.

The city only needed the northwest edge of the grounds for the roundabout, including 10 of 58 parking spots and the Mohawk Landing sign. Brainard, though, seized the opportunity to purchase the entire property for redevelopment.

The shopping center was built in 1982. At the time, suburban sprawl was driving development of such retail strip malls in place of homes along much of South Range Line Road. For the past two decades, Brainard has been working to redevelop many of those shopping centers into a more walkable downtown.

Brainard said the city would work to help the businesses in the shopping center stay in Carmel, hopefully, he said, at the same location. He said he is a frequent customer at Kim's Alterations and Thai Castle.

Esther Huh, who owns Kim's Alterations, said she was worried when she first heard the city had purchased the building. However, she said, city officials told her and the owner of Thai Castle that redevelopment would not happen quickly. When the city does move forward with its plans, she said she would explore her options.

"We are going to stay here," she said. "I talked to the city and it's not going to happen anytime soon."